Purple People Eater
by Sarah the mutant farm girl
Summary: People start coming up missing from a nursing home in Rhode Island, but that's not the hunters only problem. They also run into a few old friends of Autumn's.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural or any related materials. **

**A/N: Seer, Will is refusing to sober up so until he does I hope this is okay. Everyone else, I'm writing this while my laptop is down, if by some miracle I get to work on if faithfully it's because I've slaughtered my siblings. So keep and eye out on the news for a 17 year old home schooled Ohio girl killing her siblings for computer access. Sorry about the names recently too, well more so after you read this chapter. I'm in an X-Men mood so they've been creeping up on me.**

**The Purple People Eater**

**Chapter One**

_March fifth, 2007 Bowling Green, Rhode Island_

Remy nodded to the nurse. He liked her, Jean was new to the facility and she'd had him everyday she'd worked. Remy liked that she could cut up with him like he was normal, she didn't care that he was a fruit loop. Jean ruffled his hair and handed him the money he'd asked for. Her smile could brighten any patient's day and he was ecstatic that she chose to brighten his.

"Now remember I lock this door for the night at eight sharp. You better be back or I'll lose my job and have to call the police for you." She warned.

"Got it ma'am," he grinned. "I'll be back before seven anyway. I just want to see the ducks down on the river."

She bit her lip watching him leave and he knew she wanted to call him back, the voices told him so. The voices said a lot, and the medications the doctors prescribed only dulled their voices making them fuzzy and hard to hear like a radio station that's not quite tuned in. But he'd stopped seeing people, if he kept up the progress he could get out soon. Mary-Lou promised he could live with her if he got better. Remy mused about living with his sister and maybe one day asking Jean to lunch in town instead of his room at the home.

Every Saturday he walked down to the river and sat on the bank, weather permitting. He'd watch the kids playing in the water, catching frogs and laughing. He loved to see the lovers that would come down and hide in the trees the lined the river. Remy couldn't wait all winter for spring to come so he could get back outside. Before he'd gotten sick and his parents gave up he'd spent all his time outdoors. So, like every Saturday he'd laced up his hiking boots, and packed a small book bag with a book he'd only pretend to read, and some snacks.

Remy settled in on his usual spot on the river falling easily into his watching, when something caught his eye. He ground his teeth determined to make the object disappear. He blinked but nothing changed about the monster staring him down. On the opposite bank was his mother. There was no way she was really there so he stood up and found the nearest foot bridge to cross. Her long raven hair was free falling over her thin shoulders, her almond shaped green eyes watched him as much as he watched her.

"Mom?" he asked when he got near her.

"Hi, Remy." She smiled. "Come walk with mommy." She held out her hand and he took it before he could think, and she led him off down the river, away from town.

_May first, 2007, Middletown, Pennsylvania_

"What about this?" Autumn tapped her computer screen standing up to stretch. Dean rolled over to look at the article she'd found.

"Aut, where you going?" he asked when she started away from the bed toward the bathroom.

"Don't worry about I'll be right back." She smiled coming back for a kiss. "Now, read that. I think it's for us." She went for a shower and he complied to her wishes. When she came back Sam and Athena were in their room already discussing the prospects of something like this.

"But they're all mentally hindered right?" Athena asked. "So how do we know they didn't fall in a swimming pool somewhere?"

"It's May in Rhode Island, pools aren't open yet." Dean reminded her. "Autty, you like this?" he nodded at the computer.

"If I didn't I wouldn't have shown you." He grimaced, thinking about that, what she'd passed up. "Dork, it's the first thing I found hostile, a place in Ohio where you can have dinner with ghosts but that's it. I like this much better."

"Okay, we head out in the morning." He nodded. Sam and Athena exchanged looks before sighing.

"Night," Sam rolled his eyes and grabbed Athena leaving. "Your sister has my brother on a very short chain." He told her once the door was securely shut behind them and they were alone in their room.

"I don't think he minds, Sammy. You want the shower first?" Athena dropped on her bed pulling John to her. "Or we could share."


	2. Chapter 2

-1** A/N: Sorry on how long it took to start the new fic, and how short the first chapter was. Anyway as always thanks for the reviews, ya'll are wonderful! **

**Chapter Two**

"No!" Autumn was tempted to slam the breaks and pull over so she could beat her sister to death for the thought. "You aren't going back there."

"Why?" Athena demanded. They were three days on the road, sleeping and driving in turns, the last thing Autumn wanted to discuss was the first thing Athena had chose for today.

"You want to pick up some scum bag at a bar for the night, fine. Whatever, you're the one getting screwed not me. You want an older guy that's okay too." She tried to clarify her stance. "Hell, I get the older guy thing. I've heard enough psycho-babble to understand that bit, but married is where I draw the line."

"A ring comes off, how are you going to stop me?" Athena demanded.

"Easy, darling sister, I'll tell Sam and Dean what you want to do and they won't let you out of sight."

"Because when a girl is with them they expect her to be a innocent little school girl," Athena huffed.

"No, because they've got morals, and know you don't mess with something that's already claimed. Just don't call him up, okay? For me, just refrain from making a fool of yourself." Autumn switched gears, choosing to beg instead of talk down.

"Uh huh, don't try that on me, sister. I didn't even say I was going to I just mentioned that Chuck lives in the area, and wondered out loud what he might be doing."

"Whatever." Autumn rolled her eyes knowing she'd won.

"So you really don't care if I get around?" Athena asked after a long pause.

"Oh Lord, save me." Autumn looked to the heavens through the windshield of her Mustang.

"I'm being serious."

"So am I, I need help fielding this one." She replied trying to mask her irritation with her sister's sex life.

"You realize Dean was the same way before you got your hooks in him."

"Athena," before she could finish her phone went off in her pocket. Autumn quickly dug out the offensive cell and answered it. "Yellow?"

"What's wrong?" Dean read the annoyance in her voice even with her hiding it.

"Nothing, just having a sisterly chat. What's up?"

"You're nuts will still be there if we stop for lunch won't they?" Dean asked and she could hear his grin.

"Yea, Dork, the nuts will still be there."

"You know, I was thinking"

"Don't hurt yourself."

"Ha-ha. I think we're going after a giant squirrel or a chipmunk."

"I'm on your tail pull off at the next exit your choice." Autumn rolled her eyes avoiding the conversation on how to kill Chip and Dale.

She didn't avoid the conversation long; lunch at Denny's included theories on how to kill a giant nut eating rodent. Autumn managed to convince Dean to trade her passengers for a while, she and Sam could discuss the hunt and start research from the car, a task Dean and Athena wouldn't want to touch. Athena and Dean spent too little time together in her opinion anyway, they were rarely just together without due cause. Sam was ready to start seriously discussing the hunt when he dropped into the Mustang.

"You've been at the wheel all day, sure you don't want me to drive?" he offered before it was too late to change her mind.

"Nah, I'm good for now." Autumn smiled. "So what do you think it is?" "You mean you didn't buy Dr. Hibbert's animal testing theory?" he asked in mock offense.

"He was turning humans into animals by combining their DNA; I don't think it's very likely."

"Okay, so where do you want to start?"

"Case file is on the back seat." She instructed him as she hit the highway.

"Wow, I'm really hurt." Athena pouted.

"You ask too many questions." Dean accused.

"And you really don't wanna go there." Autumn put her hands up when the others looked to her for the reason she was refusing to ride with her sister any longer than she had to. Athena rolled her eyes and grabbed her duffle from the back of the Mustang.

"I'm going to take a load off. Tell me when we're ready to do something constructive." John followed on her heels. The dog had recently taken to following after Athena, as if she might disappear at any moment. Sam grabbed his bag and tailed the dog and blonde to their motel room, leaving the other two hunters alone between their classic cars.

"Teenie, you okay?" he asked dropping the bag on his bed. Athena was sprawled out on hers feet crossed in the air behind her as she flipped through television channels.

"Fine, Sam." She stabbed numbers into the remote choosing a channel playing Monty Python's Flying Circus.

"You sure?" he pushed in his ever sympathetic way. She sighed but didn't answer for a long time when she finally looked at him.

"Just need a break, and we don't get those in this job." The desperation in her eyes worried him, he could see the wheels turning behind them. Athena was plotting something that was likely to get them all in trouble.

"You want to sit this one out?" he offered, figuring they could manage whatever was here alone.

"Nah, Sammy, I'll be fine in a little while. Just need to blow off some steam."

"And how are you going to do that?"

"Don't worry so much." She closed the topic turning up the volume.

"What'd Jenny call about?" Dean asked when Autumn came back out of their room. She leaned onto the hood of the Impala next to him.

"Will still missing." she sighed. "We have to lie to Teenie, though. Otherwise she'll take off to Canada to find him."

" 'Kay, what are you thinking we tell her?" Autumn shrugged and looked at him desperate for a lie. "Want to go for a drive?"

"Yea, babe." she slugged his shoulder before diving into the passenger seat and waiting on him to take her far away from the betrayal she was about to commit.

"I'm so sorry to hear that. Is there anything I can do to help?" Autumn faked her shock. The nurse shook her head, eyes darting about.

"No, his sister, Mary-Lou, don't want any search parties and anything beyond the police's basic treatment." Jean shook her head sadly. "I knew I shouldn't have let him go. I should have known better, with the stories."

"Stories?" Dean inquired. Jean brushed her hair off her shoulder, leaned over the counter between them, lowered her voice, and swept her eyes over the hall.

"Every few years a couple of people will just disappear. It's always innocent, harmless people, like seniors and our mentally ill patients, a male and a female usually but isn't that how all these stories go?"

"What do they say happen to them?" Dean asked doubling her cautious tone.

"The police drag the river and say they drown. You hear there's not much left of the body, close casket, family never sees them. This, usually, isn't a problem because there isn't much family for these people. But the kids say there's a monster in the woods that feeds on them. A lot of mutilation goes on in abandoned houses, some kid'll get a slap on the wrist for when the cops find the tore up cats or dogs or whatever."

"Have you ever been here when it's happened before?" Autumn asked.

"No, messy divorce last year, I moved here two months ago to get a fresh start." Jean pulled back now that the subject was shifting.

"I'm sorry that must be rough." She offered the nurse a weak smile.

"Got dead weight off my shoulders, the rest was worth that. But, Remy?"

"We'll see if we can't pull some strings get the case status upped." Dean promised.

They had left Sam to handle Athena and her escape thoughts, while the pair of them went to start research. Of course the first place to start was Garden Manor, a home for seniors and the mentally ill who needed more supervision than their family could or was willing to provide. Autumn had the name of the nurse on call the afternoon Remy came up missing. So, when they're 'drive' brought them past Garden Manor she instructed Dean to pull in, the best way to forget family drama being to wrap up in work drama. They'd found the nurse and told her they were reporters, that the case was on interest, and Jean had started spilling details.

"Thank you so much." Jean reached out shaking both their hands. Autumn allowed a gentle, comforting squeeze.

"Don't blame yourself for this, Jean. Whatever sick-o did this, it isn't your fault."

"I know, but that don't make it easier. I lost a patient on my watch to something I wasn't trained for." she shook her head. Dean was shooting the door looks every few seconds, ready to get away. "Thank you so much for this. Maybe the creep will come out or someone will have details."

"We can only hope." Autumn nodded.

"Thanks."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Okay, if there was any confusion on the last chapter I'm sorry. Just send me whatever threw you off and I'll fix it immediately. I had some issues getting that chapter typed and ended switching computers in the middle of it. When Boredom Strikes is a scene that probably would have gone into Chapter Two had I not Oneshot it. **

**Chapter Three**

"Where's my car?" Autumn asked pushing open Sam's door.

"Teenie took it, said she needed air." Sam answered looking up from his laptop, "Where've you two been?"  
"Working." Dean said sidling into the room behind Autumn.

"She say where?" Autumn ignored Sam's line of questioning, kneeling down to attend the affections of her rotweiler.

"No, she's not that bad a driver, though, Autty. Don't worry so much about the Mustang."

"I'm not worried about the damn car!" Both Winchesters gawked at their friend. "Did you tell her about Will?"

"He doesn't come up much." Sam glanced to his brother hoping to find some explanation.

"I didn't ask how often he comes up I asked if you told her." Autumn ground out.

"No, I didn't tell her Will is still MIA."

"Aut, what's going on?" Dean asked reaching for Autumn, ready to pull her in and hold her together, but she stepped back.

"Nothing. Can I use the Impala?"

"Sure," his answer surprised Sam. Autumn held out her hand ready for the keys. "When you fill us in." Autumn rolled her head before sinking into the powder blue bedspread of her sister's queen. "Well?" Dean prompted.

"We were a couple of towns over few years back, pre-Will. Athena got involved with this older guy, Chuck. Chuck's got a wife, couple of kids our age, bit ole house, three car garage, whole nine yards, ya know?" she wasn't making eye contact with either of them instead staring at the rose colored walls that matched the flowers on the bed spreads. "Teenie and I had a fight on the way here, because she mentioned looking him up. I told her no and threatened to tell you guys if she kept it up." She stopped talking and looked at Sam a long moment before continuing. "When we fight, she deals with it by finding a shady guy, in a random stingy bar, and screwing his brains out."

Athena pressed closer to Erik, parting his lips with her tongue. One of his hands found itself tangled up in her hair, the other firmly planted on her ass drawing her ever nearer. Breathing wasn't necessary in their lust filled hazy. She'd taken the Mustang and found the most crowded bar the furthest from the motel room. At nine o'clock it was really getting packed, some miscellaneous ball game played on each of the four television sets, and aside from the fat bald guy in the corner no one was paying them any mind. Baldy was watching them like a thirteen year old boy, confused and amazed at their display. Athena opened her eyes looking around Erik's head to wink at Baldy.

"Athena Rhea!" an all to familiar voice, tight with rage, drunkenly ripped the couple from their foggy world. "Does Autumn know what you're doing?" Erik moved away from her when he saw the tall native staring them down.

"No, Jaz, she don't." Jasper gave a martyred sigh and dug out his wallet, brown eyes rolling. He pulled a twenty from the leather and handed it to Erik.

"Here, kid. Get yourself a cab, go home, take a cold shower, and keep your hands off my sister in-law." Erik took the money giving Athena one last look before scurrying away. "So why aren't you with Will, Teenie?"

"He's an ass." she glared at him. "Why'd you chase away my fun?"

"Board games are fun, what you're doing just makes you a slut. Did you even know his name?" Jasper told her acting every bit the big brother he was.

"Erik." she replied. "Not that that's your business and I'm not your sister in-law either."

"You would be if my brother wasn't an ass. Which next week he might not be the two of you never could make up your minds about each other, I swear watching you was like a soap opera. So, Erik what?"

"Why's it matter?" Athena was flipping between sitting down talking with Jasper and punching him out.

"Teenie, you deserve better than my brother, which means you deserve a hell of a lot better than Erik." Jasper reached for her arm and she pulled away.

"What are you doing here, Jaz?"

"Saving my favorite blonde." he smiled, something about the men in his family gave them all tooth paste commercial smiles that drove most women mad, it just aggravated Athena. "Sit." he nodded to the nearest empty table. "Autty's number still the same?"

"Yeah." she sighed sitting down across from him. She was trapped now.

"Sammy, stop looking like I killed your puppy." Autumn said scanning the bar. They were on their second tavern, why any town this size needed five dives was beyond her.

"Not exactly, Aut. You just beat his puppy a little." Dean remarked brushing past them. "I'm going to ask if anyone's seen her."

"Okay." Autumn nodded. "Sam?" he looked at her from the corner of his eye. "So you're not going to talk to me at all? You know its not my fault she's like this."

"When you said involved?"

"She was his mistress. He had an affair. They did the nasty." Autumn answered forcing all emotion from her voice. She could handle a lot of shit from her sister but this was one topic she couldn't stand the thought of.

"You didn't stop her?" he wasn't even sure if he was accusing or asking.

"Sam, I tried but I can't control her. When I try to she does this." she motioned around them as they slipped in and out of passing groups making rounds on the room. "Which do you prefer? At least with Chuck I knew where she was and that she was alright." She paused knowing what she was about to purpose would send him off. "Honestly, we're better off just letting her run this course."

"Better off letting her run this course?" he reeled around on her. Autumn didn't flinch though she wanted to, stepping back out of swinging distance though wasn't a decision she could ignore.

"She's been behaving herself with you guys around. Before... She wasn't Dean-bad but she did a lot of bed hopping."

"But Will." he was desperately grabbing at straws, now.

"Once after Will, we'd had a big fight about the Mortons." Sam looked like he had more questions but her phone rang saving her from a conversation she had no intentions on continuing. "Autumn." she didn't recognize the number.

"Hey Sexy." the number may not have been familiar but the voice was.

"What's up Cloud-Boy." she grinned without meaning too. Sam was watching her closely waiting on the call to end so he could keep hounding her.

"I've got something that belongs to you." he sounded far to serious for her to lie to herself about how he'd gotten her sister.

"I'm going to kill her." she said frustrations slipping out of her control and into her voice.

"That's a bit drastic, why don't you just come pick her up?" Autumn covered the mouth piece.

"Sam, get Dean. Friend of mine has her." Sam nodded obeying orders.

"We're on Pike."

"Already on my way." she started to hang up but his voice interrupted her.

"Oh and Autty, leave John at home."

"Why would I bring the dog to a bar?" she asked confused.

"I mean the man." Jasper clarified.

"I haven't traveled with Dad in ages."

"Great, then there are three pairs of us in town. Get here. We need to plan."

"So you want to tell me what's going on?" Jasper put his cell down on the table between them folding his hands on the carved up surface.

"Want to tell me what you mean?" Athena liked Jasper, he was generally a good guy, but he had a way of watching that just gave her the creeps and he was watching now.

"Jen called me looking for your man."

"He and I broke up." Athena glared.

"So I heard, disappointed me that the wedge that drove me and my sister apart didn't stay together as long as our fight. Which is why when she called I was so shocked."

"She called?" Athena finally picked up the hint he was dropping. "But Autty said we'd look for him before hunting anything else if he still hadn't shown up."

"I'm sure he's fine. I wondered why you weren't with him, though. Even when the two of you aren't talking you've always had each other's backs."

"That bitch." she had to make an effort not to tune Jasper out now. "Whose Jen got searching?"

"At the moment?" he asked and she nodded. "Just Marc's on it." his voice lowered signaling his attempts at hiding his dislike for his brother's friend.

"Where's Mack?" she asked switching subjects before either of them got trapped in plotting.

"On her way here. She stopped to do a little research. We're doing a scavenger's hunt here. Routine cleansings are in high demand, wouldn't believe the number of cycle creatures coming out. The nursing homes and hospitals all need a cleansing, the spirits that have always been so peaceful are raising hell."

"You know why don't you?" he nodded grimacing.

"That damn demon Winchester's been after. Bobby said Dean and Sam ended two of its kids, said you and Autty-girl hooked up with them for a couple of hunts too. So you two finally allowed to join John's hunting party?"

"Something like that." Athena shrugged not willing to go into details on her hunting party. She looked towards the door waiting for Autumn to come in so she could kill her.

"Singer showed me pictures of the Impala. How'd those boys walk away?"

"You won't like my opinion, Jaz."

"When's that ever stopped you from sharing?"

"They're still needed for this fight, something is watching out for them. Something doesn't want them dead and is pulling in some serious favors to keep them around to see this out."

"Angels again, Teenie?" he asked with disbelief.

"Could be other things, but they don't fit as well as guardians."

"You're losing it, kiddo."

"Like I said, you won't like my opinion."

"You never told me why you're in town." he pointed out before they started debating beliefs.

"Something is stealing nuts from Garden Manor."

"You've seen the amount of rain they've had, they're probably just falling in the river, with the water as high as its been..." he trailed off letting her fill in the blanks.

"Come on, Jasper. Tell me you don't believe that."

"Don't ask questions, Jasper is a freak about questions." Autumn warned as Dean parked the Chevy.

"Who is he?" Sam asked trying to figure out what to say to the man who had Athena.

"Jen and Will's older brother. He and Jen don't talk much anymore, but he'll still kill for her in a heart beat so don't bring her up. It's a thin line between what he thinks exceptable thoughts about his sister and what what's not.

"Anything else we should know?" Dean asked letting her out of the back seat.

"He don't like your father, and is likely to be with Mackenzie Singer, Bobby's niece through an estrange brother."

"HEY! D-Girl, long time!" No sooner had they made it across the parking lot did a green eyed brunet spot them jumping out of her Rabbit.

"Yea well, honey, I told you I wasn't going to be around a dick who couldn't keep his mouth of my daddy." Autumn smirked turning to the woman.

"You mean your sugga daddy." the woman corrected.

"Hey now!" Autumn playfully smacked the other woman, who drug her into a hug.

"Good to see you, Autty."

"Not such a bad sight yourself, Mack."

**A/N: I'm going to start the next chapter right now, hopefully I'll get it up today or tomorrow morning. You won't be getting updates on the weekends or Mondays until my computer's fixed. I've got to put all my computer time into the time I'm up in the mornings before my siblings. ANYWAY hope this chapter helped clear up somethings from last chapter, and we still have one more old buddy to bring in before I can say the gang's all here. Hope ya'll enjoy, leave me a review.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: The next chapter will probably be going through a beta, so if things get a little slow in updating after this that's why. I'll try to keep it moving as quickly as it has been. Watch carefully in this chapter I gave away a clue as to who the other guest star is. I hope I didn't ruin the boys too bad in this chapter, and we'll get on to the hunt shortly, I promise. R&R and as always if you have any questions just drop me a line.**

**Chapter Four**

"Jasper Raining, Mackenzie Singer, meet Sam and Dean Winchester."

"Raining," Mackenzie said holding up her left ring finger displaying the simple, rock less, gold band.

"You finally married the fool." Autumn laughed. "You realize that takes you out of the pool, Mack."

"I know," the brunet smiled tugging Jasper to her. "But he's so worth, the bet." Jasper looked painfully comfortable with this public display of affection, though he already looked like he had a stick stuck up his ass, Dean mused.

"Did better with intros this time, Autty-girl," Dean watched Autumn's face light up at the praise. His eye landed on Athena, who donned the same look she had when they'd first get off a hunt.

"Teen, come with me a moment." Dean ordered, she looked for a reason not too before sighing.

"Yea," Athena looked at Sam, part of their little communication, but he was making a point of looking anywhere but her. Dean led her out to the Impala not entirely sure what he'd say once he got there, but she saved him the trouble barely waiting till the doors shut. "I'm a bitch and a slut, big deal. You are too, and I'd bet my last breath that if she wasn't putting out you wouldn't be with Autumn."

"What's going on in here?" he asked, ignoring the insult, and tapping her forehead.

"Nothing, Dean."

"Autumn told us why you do this, the post-fight dance," He told her. Athena shifted in her seat not willing to share anything. "Look, Teenie, if this is how you want to handle things, I get it. But you need to be safe about it." On cue she extracted a derringer and Trojan dropping both in his lap.

"I'm safe."

"Next time take Sam or I with you. Make sure the loser knows someone will be waiting for you to come home." Dean had never needed to give Sam this talk, he'd never had a little sister to look after, or even a female in his life that stayed longer than a single hunt. This was a whole new ball game and he had only the vaguest idea on how it was played.

"Won't work, Autumn will think you're siding with me and Sam," she paused mid sentence to look him in the eye for a brief moment. "Sam's too complicated, he'd guilt me out of it."

"If you can be guilted out its not what you should be doing." Dean told her hoping not to sound too hypocritical, this was one double standard he was glad to be on the winning side of.

"Uh huh, and what should I be doing, all knowing one?" she asked, her usually sweet voice twisted with sarcasm.

"Athena, Sam knows about Chuck too, he's not impressed that you'd do something like that. I'm not thrilled with the idea, married is off limits, we don't go there no matter how unhappy it is. I don't know what lines you've been feeding Sam, but you better figure out what you should be doing before he gets you alone."

"I should be turning Canada upside down looking for Will."

"Then why are you still here?" he demanded. She just stared at him as if the idea of leaving alone had never occurred to her.

Mackenzie waited until Dean and Athena were out of earshot before turning to Autumn with a smirk, "So that's why you're still with them." She titled her head to catch the full effect of Autumn's face.

"Athena and Dean?" Jasper frowned watching the pair retreat out the door. "He's a little old for her isn't her?"

"Like age matters, Jazzy, you're nearly ten years older than me and what about Autty and the werewolf?"

"HEY! Nothing happened between Autty and the werewolf." Autumn tried to defend herself.

"Darling, you told me, sparing no detail, what happened between you and Rafael and if that's nothing I wouldn't mind a little nothing." Autumn wrapped fingers around the silver bullet hanging around her throat and looked to Jasper choosing to avoid a bad slip of news.

"You were worried about more hunters?"

"That was before I knew it was just you and one of these guys. I wasn't aware you were full timing with John's boys." Jasper answered eyeing Sam. Autumn smiled giving a lock of Sam's hair a tug.

"Just since November, just can't pass up a chance to hunt with a Winchester."

"Because it obviously had nothing to do with you getting turned into the Burning Woman," Jasper shot.

"Ooo Low blow," Autumn winced. "It really didn't have anything to do with that, you know I already wanted that bastard beyond Hell." She dumped herself in a chair, noticing she and Sam were still standing while her friends had already seated themselves leaving her and Sam looking slightly awkward. Sam followed suit under the constant careful watch of Jasper's toffee eyes.

"That and a certain Winchester gives her"  
"MACK!" Autumn slapped the table causing Mackenzie to laugh.

"Fine, but we all see the looks you give him, damn near swear he wasn't wearing a stitch. The whole world sees it, babe." She rolled her eyes and Autumn stuck her tongue out.

"You too are so mature." Jasper chided.

"We try." The both chimed breaking off into giggles.

"Separate they're never like this, put them together you'd think they were higher than a kite."

"Athena's a bit looser." Sam smiled watching Autumn, it was nice to see her so relaxed he didn't even see her this at ease when he'd catch her and Dean sleeping on the couch at the cabin.

"For better or worse," Jasper shook his head. "You kids did nice work in Vegas. We pulled in as ya'll were high tailing it out."

"Yea, and you best watch your asses too. Left your faces on every security cam in town." Mackenzie shaped up.

"What else is new? Pigs all over the country have my mug on their walls. Flattering really."

"Autty, that wasn't no minor salting you did, the FBI are in on it. You've got your own agent, they link you to half of what they're tailing John for and you're out like a light." Jasper warned.

"I'll watch my back, Dad." She sighed.

"Good, in the mean time what are you doing on the Athena front?" Autumn shrugged.

"She'll be fine once she gets it out of her system, as long as she don't find out Will's still off the radar." Jasper sat a little straighter and his wife's head spun around to gawk at him.

"Jaz, you told her?" Mackenzie asked.

"That's great." Autumn buried her face in her hands in an effort to hide from the world at large.

"You weren't going to tell her at all?" Sam reached for her hands to pull them away but Jasper was already out of his seat and had hold of his arms.

"Don't touch her, Winchester."

"Jasper stop," Autumn peeked through her fingers. "Sammy's alright." She disappeared for another beat before dropping her hands and speaking again. "If I told her we'd lose her, Sam."

"Lose her how?" he twisted in his seat, so as to catch her every move, he might not read her as well as Athena and Dean but he knew her well enough to catch a lie.

"If anyone watches her I do, I know she's burnt out. She was ready to throw in the towel as soon as we got Will back the first time. Then he comes back, but you were still exotic and new. She finds him on vaca somewhere and she'd done and gone."

"What if it were Rafe? You'd want Lena to tell you if he went MIA wouldn't you?" She skipped the how he knew question going straight for shutting down.

"That's completely different, Samuel."

"It's Sam," he ground. Autumn hid a smirk, knowing she had him distracted now. Jasper and Mackenzie shifted uncomfortably across the table waiting for a break in the tension.

"Sam." The whole table looked up to see Dean. He had a white knuckle grip on Athena's arm that he was lucky Jasper couldn't see. "Take the Mustang and Wild Woman and go home. Don't let her out of your sight for a second."

"Dean," Sam was still not making eye contact with the blonde though his eyes did sweep over her committing the disheveled hair, hastily straightened clothes, and black bra strap sneaking out from under her sleeve to memory.

"Just do it, we'll be back soon, and decide how to handle Squirrelzilla."

"Why can't Autumn?"

"Because I'm grounded, and you don't know their exposed wires." Athena told him jerking her head in the direction of the two new hunters and pulling her arm free of Dean's grip. She handed him the keys before storming off toward the car again.

"Dean?" Autumn didn't have to finish the rest of the question.

"Don't worry, Aut, I took care of it." He flashed her his infamous smile, taking Sam's vacated chair. "So what are they here for?" he continued sending the couple in question an appraising look.

"Sammy, at least look at me." Athena pleaded as she chased after him into their motel room. It was going to be harder than he had originally thought to share a room with her.

"It's Sam, Athena. I'm not Sammy." He reeled around on her and she stopped like he'd slapped her, he may as well have for the broken hearted expression her sparkling blue eyes took on.

"Fine, _Sam_, what are you thinking?" Sam considered storming out but she'd probably just follow. She was too damn difficult sometimes.

"You don't want to know." He growled running fingers through his hair. "What the hell Athena?" he demanded after a pause. "You can't just go off like that, didn't you learn anything from the shape shifter? Are you really that freaking dense?"

"Just because you can't get it up don't mean other guys won't." she shot back only confusing him which pissed him off even more.

"They have zero respect for you!" their voices were climbing, not that either of them noticed it as they stepped closer to each other puffed up like turkeys. "Is that what you want? Do you really want used and thrown away, like that?"

"At least they notice me! I'm not Autumn's kid sister or Will's girl to them. They see me and only me!"

"NO!" he growled fighting not to grab her and shake her. "They don't see you. They just see an easy lay."

"Maybe that's all I am!" she said icily. For the first time Sam realized they were both at the top of their voices, hands clenched ready to take a blow, and red faced.

"You're a lot more than 'just' anything, Athena." He said calmer.

"To who?" she asked bringing her voice down, though it was still razor sharp. "Who sees more than just Autumn's sister and Will's Ex? More than that amateur that follows the Winchesters around? More than just another nobody? Who sees more than a one nighter?"

"Autumn, Dad, Will and Dean for starters."

"So what do you see, _Sam_?" she spat acid when she said his name.

"Right now?" he had to make a great effort not to smirk. She looked like she was about to get her mug shot done. Her long blonde hair falling everywhere, blue eyes red rimmed with angry tears, blue jeans that wouldn't look half as good on anyone else, and wrinkled Tickle Me Elmo t-shirt. Athena shrugged.

"Whenever."

"Right now, I see a lost girl." Her jaw clenched and he was overcome with the urge to kiss it teasing it into relaxing. "But, I usually see a brave, strong, talented woman, with opinions and thoughts. Who claims Goofy is Minnie and Pluto's love child and cries every time she hears Holes in the Floor of Heaven." She smiled, a single tear escaping and gliding down her cheek. Sam moved forward reaching out to wipe away the salty droplet, not fully trusting himself to only remove the tear.

"Sam, why do you lie to me?" he chocked out a laugh.

"To see you smile." He blurted before registering the thought to speak.

"So, you want to give me a speech on what is moral?" she spared him, not acknowledging his word vomit.

"Let's just watch TV, we've said enough."


	5. Chapter 5

-1_A/N: Yea its been a while but this was a beautiful weekend and fighting for computer time ranked lower than spending time with my dogs outside and putting up the fence for my horse. So now, Sunday night, my shoulders are aching and I still have at least another day of work to do before the fence is useable but I did accomplish something this weekend. _

**Chapter Five**

"Are we good?" Autumn asked as they poured out of their motel rooms the next morning.

"Yea," Sam nodded. "So when'd you kiddies get in last night?"

"We closed." Dean said proudly wrapping his arms around Autumn's waist and pulling her to him.

"Dean and I are going to check the river you want the interviews?" Autumn asked trying to wiggle free of Dean who was taking it as a challenge to hold her longer.

"You taking John, then?" Athena stumbled out of the room and leaned into the Mustang pulling her hair back into a ponytail.

"He needs a good run, unles that's a problem for you."

"No, not a problem at all. Dean my gun's jammed can you take a look at it?"

"Sure, where is she?" Dean let Autumn go and she dove behind Sam peeking around him when Dean took and exaggerated step in her direction.

"Did someone drop you on your head when you were a baby?" Athena teased leading him into her and Sam's room. "Here." she handed him the derringer off the bedside table.

"Your 'protection' is tiny and broken?"

'I can't hide a magnum in my pants, and, honestly Dean-o, I don't think you can either." she smirked. "So can you fix it?" he scrutinized the gun and sighed.

"Yea, its not bad I'll fix her when we get in tonight. D'you need a spare until then?"

"No, I only use that when I'm with someone." Athena took sudden interest in her shoes. "Did they buy it?" she rolled up her sleeve revealing a faint bruise. Dean knew he'd been pissed last night, the more he and Athena had talked and the more he'd thought about the things she was willing to do just because she was pissed at her sister the madder he got. But he didn't think he was so pissed that he'd actually hurt her when she'd put her arm in his hand and told him to act like he was dragging her along.

"I did that?" he pocketed his hands and the gun.

"Yea, but I've had worse. Sam thinks you really were pissed and tried to set me straight."

"I am and did." Athena rolled down her sleeve again, and looked back to him blue eyes begging for an answer. "Yes, they bought it."

"Good," she was out the door before he could warn her against using him again.

"Teenie, you and I are catching up with Mack at seven so be ready, kay?" Autumn was loading John in the back of the Impala when Dean came back out.

"Yea, what we meeting her for?"

"Don't worry 'bout it, it's not professional. Just behave." she looked to Sam a silent plea to keep a close eye on her sister.

"What the hell, Autty!" Athena burst catching the exchange between Sam and her sister.

"Doodle, you're still grounded."

"I'm 24 how can I be grounded?"

"Just be good and I'll see you tonight." Autumn tossed the Mustang's keys to Sam and dropped into the Impala. "You sre you and Sam'll be fine alone?" Dean closed the door behind him starting the car in one fluid movement.

"Babe we managed just fine before you, I think we can handle one night."

Sam wished Athena was a little less vocal as she complained about not needing babysat. Once they go to the interviews she settled down, though. Mary-Lou Osbourne provided next to no information about her brother, which turned out to be about par. Seems once you've been commited no one wants anything to do with you anymore. Half a dozen people later they'd established that the only semblance to a pattered was the river was up every six years when two people would come up missing.

Dean and Autumn weren't doing any better there were no tracks to follow, no mysterious markings on trees, no sulfur, ectoplasm, or even a scent that John could pick up. The locals had scrounged the banks destroying any evidence that had been there of the creature using them as a hunting grounds. The river itself had been dragged bringing up nothing of any use to the case. So the couple fell into questioning the people who frequented the spot, learning that Remy had been seen sitting in his usual spot, he'd gotten up crossed a foot bridge, spoke to himself, and walked away from town alone.

Dean ran his fingers through his hair desperate for anything to do that would release his mind to thinking. Autumn sat pretzel legged against the wall her journal and his dad's across her lap as she referenced invisible entities. John laid on his back, all four in the air, by the door making it impossible for anyone to come or go without him knowing. Sam and Athena were in chairs not far from Autumn rattling off a long list of nothing, that they'd found today.

"Do you think the victims see it?" Athena asked leaned forward elbows on her knees and hair hiding her face.

"They all have disorders or diseases with the symptoms of hallucinations, nothing that would make them a threat to the world at large just disoriented if left unmedicated." Sam filled in.

"Meaning it could easily use that showing itself only to the victims." Autumn muttered angrily flipping pages in John's leather binder.

"Deep breath Autty, what alters perception?" Sam asked her calmly.

"That's a long list we have to narrow it down, Sammy. Otherwise we'll never get anywhere." she glanced at a watch that wasn't there.

"Almost six." Dean answered for her.

"Mkay, Athena we need to get ready." Athena jumped up grinning.

"Yup yup yup." she mimicked the annoying dino. "See you boys later." she ruffled Sam's hair before skidding out the door.

"We could lose her as bait, she's definitely crazy." Autumn joked rocking to her feet.

"I doubt that'll work." Sam killed the thought.

"How's the hunt?" Mackenzie asked drawing bother women into a hug.

"It's a hunt." Autumn shrugged. "Yours?"

"Cleaned Cross Creek Hospital today, have a retirement center tomorrow. Thank God for vents." she grinned. "But we've covered work now, lets go inside and see what we can do about the past two years."

Vertigo was a club in a city half hour from the town they were staying in. It was equipped with an over muscled bouncer, greasey DJ who played the music too loud to understand, and enough acholol to make an elephant forget. The girls got in without any trouble, not that the short skirts and stove pipe boots helped any.

"Okay ladies, lets start small, how much have we added to the pot?" Mackenzie went for the larges ice breaker she knew.

"Fifty." Athena yelled over the throbbing drum solo.

"Thirty, Autty?"

"Natta." Mackenzie frowned looking her friend over with a critical eye.

"Autumn, I know you're the good girl and all but you've been laid so either you tell me or I start asking around, and you know I can find out."

"Her and Dean, since January." Athena supplied with a grin. "So Autty puts in her first ten, our little girl's growing up." the blonde pretended to wipe away tears as they fought their way to the bar.

" 'Dean' 'since' ?" Mackenzi turned away from Autumn all her attention focusing on Athena. "Meaning 'friends with benefits' or they're actually together?"

"They share a bed and secret language." Athena elaborated.

"We don't have a secret language!" Autumn huffed.

"You soo do! I thought it was just part of the hunting so close, that you'd developed away to read each other's thoughts by they way you moved, like we used to." Mackenzie bounced on the balls of her feet. "So, what's the demon's name?" she asked coyly.

"What demon?" Autumn shouted back.

"The one you made a deal with to get, not just any Winchester but, Dean Winchester."

"Maybe I just have something the other girls don't." Autumn answered attempting smugness.

"Please, do tell." Mackenzie teased.

"Oh the both of you lay off!" Athena sighed. "You're acting like little kids, you've both got nice toys, shut up."

"You've got a nice toy, too, just won't play with him anymore." Autumn countered.

"Good gracious me," Mackenzie put a hand to her heart. "If I had a toy like Willy I'd play with him everyday." Athena slipped through a group of men and made it to the bar.

"What happened anyway?" Mackenzie turned to Autumn, the pair deciding to let their younger third do the drink fetching. "Last I heard they were hot and heavy, steaming right along and you were thinking about going solo, then Red's dead and she's shot Will through the heart."

"Leithfold." Autumn answered. Athena came back passing pretty little umbrella drinks out. "What the hell is this?"  
"You want something else you should have ordered it yourself, darling." Athena snapped.

"What's a leithfold?" the girls started working their way to a secluded, quiet, corner in the back.

"Shadow shroud, piece of clothing set to devour people." Athena explained. "It killed Red and his brother and was trying to kill Will so he bailed and led it off to lala land."

"Sounds brave and romantic to me, why didn't you jump him once he slayed the dragon? You could be banging him in the highest room of the tallest tower of your castle, princess."

"He abandoned me, you don't build a house on ground that disappears randomly."

"But we're talking about Will Raining. He's the baby, with the dimples, he's the only one in the family with a sense of humor, and my God have you seen his ass?"

"Mack, its complicated, just drop it."

"Yes, lets talk about someone else ass." Autumn spoke up.

"How about Winchester asses, Teenie?" Mackenzie teased. "Autumn's intent with their asses has always been clear, but what's your intent?"

"Just to kill the SOB that killed Martha and Nick." Athena replied bitterly.

"So Sammy doesn't interest you at all, with those 'just touch me' locks of chocolate hair, and big 'the world sucks so much' eyes?"

"Its Sam, and no." Autumn snorted only encouraging Mackenzie.

"What's wrong with calling him Sammy?"

"He doesn't like it, says Sammy is a chubby twelve year old." Athena informed Mack, trying to sound dignified. Mackenzie shook her head with a short laugh.

"I go away for a few months and you both get tritter pated."

"You put thirty bucks in the account, that's three partners other than Jasper, care to share?" Athena shot back.

"Jasper and I broke up and went our separate ways for a while." Mackenzie shrugged as if it was a matter worth little concern.

"How long is a while and why didn't you call?" Autumn asked, shocked by this new bit of information.

"It's six months and I didn't want to hear your crap about guys being embodiments of pure evil."

"So how'd you get back together?" Athena questioned.

"Oh you know annual hunters conventions." Mackenzie played with the straw of her drink. "But that had to have been the worst six months of my life. Its unreal the number of times I'd reach for him then wake up cause he wasn't there." Athena nodded knowingly.

"I still reach for Will, drives me nuts." They looked to Autumn who just shook her head. She had Dean, before him was Billy-Jack and she'd never reached for him in the spans of time that separated the two men.

"Autumn, do you know that man?" Mackenzie discretely pointed out a dark haired lanky man.

"He looks familiar, why?"

"Because he's been watching you all night. Want me to check him out?" she eyed the man.

"No, let him watch, if he causes any trouble I'm pretty sure we can take him." Autumn dismissed.

"Okie dokie," Mackenzie smirked after a beat. "Why don't you fill in this lapse in conversation with Dean details?"

"Not a chance." Autumn frowned.

"Techinacally you have to, Autty." Athena backed Mackenzie.

"Yea the rules of the bet are that should we ask, details must be given unles you're in love with the guy." Mackenzie stated reminding her of the rules to the bet they'd started almost eight years ago.

"You're not getting details, that's between me and him."

"I'm sure he'd tell anyone who askes," Mackenzie argued. "You have to tell, we've always shared."

"I don't think I have to, sorry." Autumn tried to shut down the conversation.

"So have you told him? Have you said the L word?" Mackenzie asked determined to get some sort of juicey information out of her friend.

"No L word, we don't use that word." Autumn shook her head furiously.

"Okay what word do you use?"

"Dork and he uses Aut." Athena divulged more information.

"I see, maybe. Instead of saying it you call him names and don't kill him when he uses your uncles pet name? That's cute, not the stuff of romance novels, more crappy chick flicks. So beyond letting you call him dork whats he do?" Autumn shrugged wishing the conversation to die.

Upon seeing her sister had no intentions of answering Athena did, "He's stopped flirting unles its absolutely nesscary."

"Explain." Mackenzie bid and Athena told her about the waitress in Indiana. While the two picked apart the scenerio Autumn watched the familiar man, trying to place him. She knew he wasn't supposed to be here but couldn't place why. "Autumn Aura Daemon, let's go!" Mackenzie suddenly jerked her from her thoughts.

"Where?" she stumbled trying to gather words.

"You should have kicked that bitch's ass. So, that's what we're going to do."

"Mack, there'll be others, and I told Dean I'd be back tonight."

"Screw Dean, there won't be others if you make and example of this one."

"I'm not kicking any ass tonight, Mack, and believe me I have every intentions on screwing Dean."

"Fine," Mackenzie actually pouted causing Athena to snicker and try to console her friend.

"Drama queen." Autumn teased.

"Then you're the Drama Dutches."

"Who out ranks me?" she demanded.

"Princess Athena." Mackenzie answered matter-of-factly.

"No, I'm the godess." Athena stood straighter, sticking her chest out, and looked down her nose at them.

"Ego's big enough at least." both older women laughed.

Several debates and a number of drinks later they parted ways. Autumn had her boots off and skirt unzipped before she reached the door. Dean was hugging a bucket of chicken, Young Frankenstien on the television, and drool trailing down his chin, as he snored softly. Autumn laid her boots over her duffel bag fishing out her digital camera, snapping a few shots before removing the bucket and wiping away the drool.

"Have fun with the girls?" he asked stirring.

"Would have rather been the bucket of chicken."

"That good eh?" Autumn let her skirt fall and crawled in bed next to Dean.

"Not really, it was just a lot of girl talk." she yawned making him yawn.

"Oh."

"Yea," she kissed him settling into his side and wrapping his arm around her. "G'night Dork." he kissed her hair flicking off the tv.

"Night, Aut."


	6. Chapter 6

-1

**Chapter Six**

Dean strode out in front of them, Sam trailing behind, Jasper between the two brothers no detail escaping their eyes. It had been raining off and on all afternoon, the down pour had reduced to a sprinkling for the time being but the heavy clouds moving in suggested it'd be raining cats and dogs again soon. The rain made the banks slicker than snot, Jasper's words, and the three of them had fallen more than a few times. It'd been Jasper's idea to split up, the girls taking the opposite bank. Sam cast a glance in their direction to see them Mackenzie arms thrown wide talking animatedly Athena walking backwards to watch her and Autumn weaving in and out of trees the only one doing any real looking. They didn't expect to find much on their second pass through, Autumn and Dean having already been here. Sam sighed and went back to his futile scanning of the area around him.

"What's it like?" Jasper asked filling in the silent void that had taken over since the girls crossed the bridge.

"What?" Dean looked over his shoulder but didn't speak.

"Being the sons of a legend, having your name on the lips of every hunter in the States, and still not being able to find a simple little monster?"

"Uh, didn't really know the legend part until we got to your family's resort." Sam answered awkwardly, scratching his neck.

"Jen and Will's resort, Dad's names on the sign but it their baby." Jasper corrected. "How'd you make it 24 years not knowing?" Dean slipped between trees working further up, away from the river's roar, and leaving Sam to deal with the questioning. Sam shrugged and squatted to look at a stray foot print, sunk deep in the clay of the riverside. "Sorry, I forgot Daddy dearest doesn't let anyone see his precious boys." Jasper said bitterly. Sam hunkered lower to the ground, not that the print was that interesting, trying to ignore Jasper. "Not going to defend your father's motives?" Dean dropped out of the trees, none to gracefully, having to grab a root sticking out of the rise to steady himself.

"Have a problem there, Jas?"

"My family hunts forever; your mommy becomes a demon's matchstick and suddenly your dad's leading a one man army against a demon of unfathomable power." Dean slammed Jasper into the nearest tree, Sam jumping up to see the commotion.

"Don't talk about my family like that." Dean grated, Sam saw the restrain in his brother for not having already pummeled Jasper.

"What're you gonna do, hit me?" he sneered.

"Thinking about it."

"Really, would Autty like that?"

"Dean, just let him go." Sam pleaded eyes darting between the two older men and the women on the other side of the river, who hadn't noticed anything a miss yet.

"What's your problem with my family?" Dean pushed Jasper further into the tree causing the man to wince, jaw grinding until the pressure evened out.

"You have no respect. You think your hunt is the only hunt that matters. Where were you when Marc's mom was killed? When my baby brother was leading a demented cloak cross country? Where was your family when the rest of us were closing up ranks? When we were setting things right when our own would get killed?"

"We took care of Will's leithfold."

"One deed doesn't clear a million others."

Dean had had enough, he drew back and punched Jasper. Rock hard fist meeting soft flesh of Jasper's face. Jasper threw is weight forward, causing them both to lose their footing and fall to the ground, slipping and sliding down into the water throwing punches heedless of their dangerous position. Even from across the river Sam heard John barking, it was difficult to force his eyes to find the girls and not look at his brother. John was splashing into the waves trying to cross to protect his people, Autumn ran in grabbing his collar and drug him back. Sam couldn't be sure but he thought he read confusion on their distance blurred faces. In the split second it took to check the woman folk Jasper and Dean slipped deeper into the water. When their heads went under they both came up sputtering, and cursing, grabbing at the rocks and roots protruding from the bank to pull themselves back in. Sam bit the inside of his mouth trying not to laugh as he watched them flop on the bank like drown cats. To make matters worse both their cells went off with ringtones suggesting what he could easily prove but didn't dare to look at Autumn and Mackenzie to prove.

"Do I need to come over there?" Autumn asked. It didn't take long after answering their other halves' calls for their phones to give way, so they were now using Sam's on speaker.

"He started it!" Dean pointed to Jasper and Sam lost it when Athena started laughing on the other end of the phone.

"I don't care who started it, I'll finish it." Mackenzie threatened reminding everyone of too many car rides trapped in the backseat with annoying siblings.

"Sorry, Mackie." Jasper hung his head.

"Don't be apologizing to me, tell it to Dean." Jasper and Dean glared across the river at the women who stood hands on their hips waiting for the world to end, or rather something just as rare.

"Come on, which one of you is the bigger man?" Athena teased. With the chance at being better than the other they both said hasty apologizes at the same time.

"Go a little further then we'll turn back, won't be any good to anyone sick." Autumn instructed snapping her phone shut.

"Dudes, you're so whipped." Sam laughed tucking away his phone.

"Shut up Geek Boy."

"Wait. Wait!" Autumn put a hand up and her companions stopped to see what the hold up was.

"What is it my queen?" Athena asked, the cold rain had soaked them clear through to the bone and even the exaggerated hunting stories and conquests weren't keeping them in high spirits. They'd been stupid enough to play along with the boys wishes letting them take one bank alone only for them to destroy their phones in a watery fight. Mack dropped onto a moss covered fallen tree, with a groan.

"Yo Autty!" she called when the red head didn't answer her sister. Autumn was staring up the hill into the trees like a cat watching a bird out the window. She held up a finger slipping into the brush and bramble, positioning her feet to make minimal noise, she froze again when she saw a flicker of movement to large to be any animal this close to town.

"Mark the tree and follow if you can be quiet." Autumn ordered barely louder than the breeze. She was too focused on the spot to care that neither of the women had ever liked being ordered like that. She could just make out the form of a man, well camouflaged, only because the sun broke around him Mackenzie was doing a bad job of being silent, but Athena was already at her side making as much sound as the deer who lived here. "You see that?" she whispered.

"See what?" Athena breathed peering through the trees.

"The person." Autumn nodded in the direction of her find.

"No, Autty there's nothing there." Athena eyed her sister worriedly. Mackenzie practically crashed into place on Autumn's other side, but she was to intent on the man to scold the woman's noisiness. The man stepped forward becoming all to clear.

"The bastard."

"What?" both women demanded. Autumn reached around for her gun taking off at a dead run straight up the hill toward the man. No one used her uncle's skin with out permission. Before she could get a clear shot he disappeared, though something in the back of her head swore it was still there.

"Autumn!" Athena grabbed her arm. "What the hell is going on?"

"Our friend is here, or was." she looked back around spotting Mackenzie struggling to get through the thorn bushes that covered much of the ground. "Come on, we better head back."

The waitress unloaded the six beers off her tray onto the table, haphazardly placing them in front of the table's occupants. The six hunters absentmindedly steadied the bottles not coming out of their conversation in the least, though Autumn managed a smile at the forty year old Hooters wannabe. Jasper kept a hand on his face, pretending to prop his head up, to cover the bruising around his left eye. Dean had faired much the same, but didn't bother hiding his damage. Autumn had looked over the cuts and scraps achieved from sliding into the river and declared them to be nothing, and that was good enough for him.

"Are you sure it was there, Autty?" Jasper asked.

"How many times have you known me to see things that weren't there?" she asked in a slightly offended tone.

"Okay, so you saw it and no one else did, what can do that?" Mackenzie asked. The Rainings had finished up the old folks home early and decided to stick around and catch a real hunt, even if it was mooching off friends.

"I've not known spirits to show several different images at once, so we're looking for in the realm of monsters and demons." Jasper imparted his knowledge.

"It's not a shape shifter, they only take one form at a time, if this think looked like your uncle to you and didn't appear at all to anyone else" Dean let them fill in the blanks.

"No rock salt, no silver, what do we need then? We can rule out vampires, and your run of the mill demon too, they posses they don't actually take the form themselves." Athena said before taking a swing of her brew.

"Did you ever hear about Ravana?" Jasper asked out of the blue.

"Sounds like a garage band." Sam answered.

"Defiantly not. He was he a ten-headed demon, and king of these shape shifting demons rakshasas."

"You mean those people in Dungeons and Dragons with the animal heads?" Autumn asked with renewed interest.

"Autumn, is there anything you wish to confess before I die laughing at you?" Mackenzie asked trying to hide the laughter in her voice.

"I played a few times, I wasn't very good." Autumn rolled her eyes. "In the game they were monsters usually really good at raising the dead, creating illusions, and enchantments, and they were damn near impossible to kill."

"Not what I meant, but that has touched the original myths." Jasper ignored the general disapproval of having played D&D. "It's a Hindu myth, in a previous life they were human and generally very bad people, cannibals and the like. So they die and are reincarnated with poisonous claws and feast on human flesh. They love to sacrifice things, corrupt graves, piss off priests, and if they get really bored they'll posses people."

"That's all well and good but how do you kill the bitches?" Dean asked.

"Their demonic shape shifters, you've got me." Jasper shrugged.

"Perfect." Dean rolled his eyes.

"We lure it out and have a surprise party." Athena grinned. Mackenzie nodded as if this were the most logical thing to do.

"Some Latin, holy water, silver, hell we'll even bring some rock salt for good measure." the burnet added.

"And if none of that works, we've got a very pissed man eater on our hands." Autumn reminded.

"We've dealt with those before," Mackenzie smirked. "Or have you forgotten all our hunts?"

"We weren't always getting chased by man eaters."

"Sure, not always, but we ran across our fair share. We'll hit this one with the whole arsenal, something has to kill it."

"Why don't we do a little more research before we just start shooting random things at this thing." Sam advised.

"I've got to agree with Winchester, on this one." Jasper said siding with Sam.

"Fine." Athena and Mackenzie sighed. Autumn rolled her eyes turning up her beer, she'd hoped to escape tonight's meal without Dean and Sam learning too much about her previous hunts.

"So how many 'surprise parties' have you had?" Dean inquired.

"Three or four when we hunted together." Mackenzie shrugged. "We'd get in narrowed down to a couple of things it could be, and be stuck as to how to decide what it was so we'd just use all of the theories at once."

"The three of you hunted?" Sam asked knowing Dean was already entertaining thoughts of the three women alone and scared on a hunt somewhere needing him to rescue them.

"Yea, Bobby sent me in the direction of the Rainings when he heard John had sent his girls there. So the three of us started together. Had things gone better for Jen we'd still be doing it."

"Yea, Duck's Angels." Athena laughed.

"Oh I forgot about that!" Mackenzie giggled.

"You know I'll never understand why you call him Duck, he was always Mr. Darrel to me." Jasper muttered.

"Jazzy, it's an inside joke, you wouldn't get." Autumn promised. "How long did we hunt under him?"

"Better part of a year, because Red shipped us off on him. Remember he had to go find Jasper and Bane?" Athena said. "Then we stopped hunting with him because of Jen's accident, these two took off without us, in the middle of the night no less."

"Like if you could do it over you'd change that." Jasper scoffed. "Had I not kidnapped Mack, you'd never have been put on tracking duty with those rouge werewolves, therefore never needing to call my dad in and ended up getting Will." Athena glared across the table at the native.

"Better watch out, Jasper, that's the death glare." Sam warned.

"Yea, but Athena's just a little pussy cat." he reached out petting her only to have Athena snap at him. "A rabid pussy cat, but a pussy cat all the same."

"Dean, will you do me a favor?" he kissed the nape of her neck moaning his consent. "Shoot me." He went stiff and not the way he'd been expecting.

"Aut?" she rolled over on her back to look at him. They'd stayed at the bar swapping stories and finally relaxing, much later than planned, so ebbing on one in the morning Autumn and Dean weren't surprised to be the only ones still awake.

"We just had a couples night." Dean rocked back so he wasn't right over her anymore. "We discussed work, ragged on each other, and had a decent meal. If we were normal we'd have talked about the kids." she was quiet a moment. "Dear God, we basically did when we talked about the cars." he laughed.

"What do you want, baby? Isn't that what we'll do when we get the girls?" he asked. She reached for the night stand where she always left her pistol.

"I'll do it myself then." Dean forced her back down, pinning her arms to the bed over her head.

"Instead of blowing your brains out, why don't you let me blow your mind?" he asked punctuating with a fierce kiss.

"You can't do that."

"Sounds like a challenge to me." she hummed in response as he moved to straddle her again.

_A/N: haha! I got a whole chapter typed and no body is up yet -does a little dance-…. Yea, ignore my insanity I haven't ate yet and its 10 and I've been up since 4:30, and I'm kinda sore. So I hope this lived up to expectations, I'm going to scarf down some semblance of food and beat the dogs into shutting up before they wake the demons, by demons I mean my siblings. Review please! I live on your thoughts._


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: So this is short but the chapter ended itself. I tried CPR but it was dead. Chapter Suicide isn't pretty btw. So read and leave your respects, instead of mourning I'll be writing. Oh and I'm grounded so until further notice all story will come in when I'm completely alone, which happens almost never.**

**Chapter Five**

Knocking at the door roused the sleeping tangle of limbs and bedding. From somewhere to her left she heard mumblings that held a strange likeness to "If it's important, they'll pick the lock." After a few moments the knocking was replaced by a voice commanding them to rise and shine, damn younger siblings with no sex life. The knocking and voice came in intervals for a good five minutes before ceasing, but by then she was too awake to go back to sleep. So she began the process of disentangling herself. It wasn't as hard as if could have been, only because she whispered something about water conservation and a shower.

"'Bout time! You two freaking hibernate." Athena remarked as Autumn and Dean slid into the booth. "Sammy and I've done a little research. We're thinking wrought iron full of holy water, Mack says they've got some they'll loan us."

"He's Sammy again?" Autumn asked, for two days Athena had only referred to him as Sam and she said that almost icily.

"We ordered your food it'll be out in a minute, a woman disappeared by the river this morning. Mack and Jaz are already there so we're going to meet them now." Athena ignored her sister continuing the briefing.

"Thirty-one year old brunet woman OCD and multiple personalities, she was supposed to meet her daughter at school and failed. Daughter called her mom didn't get an answers so she called her dad who raised the alarm. Police won't do anything for 24 hours but the community is gathered by the river searching." Sam relayed the details when he saw the questions on Autumn and Dean's faces. "The river is behind the school."

Athena flagged the waitress asking for the bill and Dean told her to make his and Autumn's orders to-go. "Keep your hands to yourself, rugrats." Athena wagged a finger at the older couple before following Sam to the Mustang.

"That was…"

"Interesting?"

They ate in the car and deposited the garbage in the backseat, before finding the man in charge. They were quickly shuffled in a group of concerned citizens, word travels fast in a small town. Upon seeing them Mackenzie split from Jasper and came to visit, a smirk playing on her lips.

"Autumn, your boyfriend is here." She ran an accessing gaze over Dean. "You still not interested?"

"What's she talking about?" he asked. The trio was getting looks from other members of the search party, but ignored them.

"This guy was watching me when we went out the other night." Autumn dismissed. "I still don't know where I know him from."

"Then go say hi and figure it out." Mackenzie advised.

"What if he and I didn't get along and that's why I remember him?" Autumn questioned.

"A guy was watching you and you didn't tell me?" Dean demanded but Autumn waved him off.

"How hard would it be to find a distraction? You're both looking for a missing woman." Mackenzie practically leered. "Besides, like you said, we can take him."

"Autumn." Dean stared her down not leaving room for her to brush him off again. She touched his arm with a gentle smile.

"Nothing, lets just find this woman before its too late."

As good as Autumn's idea sounded it didn't last long. She and Dean pushed our further, closer to where she'd seen the creature yesterday. It wasn't hard for them to slip out of ear shot with each other and to lose sight was much easier.

"You and your partner fix things?" Autumn turned around to face the man speaking to her, she'd heard him coming, like most city slickers he was clumsy in the trees.

"Excuse me?" She didn't fear her stalker, she could draw her gun before he could blink, and he didn't have any malice in his eyes though there wasn't any flicker of warmth in them either.

"Down south, you and your partner in crime fighting had a spat."

"Bob," she remembered with sudden clarity their conversation.

"Yes, m'dear. But it doesn't seem I know your name. In Georgia you claimed to be Autumn Hyde, in Indiana you were Erma Goodlick, and if I remember correctly when you tortured and locked Tommy Minton in the bathroom, of a hotel room you shot up, you were married."

"Only name you need is Autumn." She said squaring her shoulders, hoping to look more intimidating than she was.

"Not going to deny what you did to Tommy?"

"There's nothing to deny, because nothing happened." Bob exaggerated a nod, stepping toward her.

"Do you believe that?"

"So who are you with, the feds? Or does being shot down really piss you off that much?" A cruel smirk teased his lips.

"Things would have been easier for you had you done this my way. But, Autumn, you seem to do things by your own rules."

"Bob, what are you after?"

"Those of us who obey the law call it justice." He informed her. He'd moved even closer and was less than an arm's length away, Autumn was fighting instinct to step back meeting Bob's gaze.

"What kind of justice locks away the only defense against the demons you can't imagine?"

"Right, crime fighters." He rolled his eyes. "Where's your side kick?"

"On his lunch break, but I can handle you without"

"Aut! They found her." Dean came skidding down the mud slick slope.

"She alive?" Autumn asked turning her attention from Bob.

"Yea, pretty disoriented though." He stopped to stand possessively at her side. "Whose this?"

"Dean, this is Bob he's with the feds."

"Nice to meet you. Come on babe, we need to meet up with the others and get a head count." Dean put his hand on the small of her back guiding her away from Bob.

"Hey, you seen Autumn?" Dean asked hiding the panic in his voice.

"No, I thought she was with you." Athena answered as Mackenzie and Jasper joined their group.

"So did I, we were headed to where she saw the bitch yesterday and I turned around and she was gone."

"Did you look for her?"

"No, Jasper. I just came back leaving her to the wolves." Dean snapped.

"Let's calm down boys." Mackenzie sighed producing her phone and dialing Autumn's number. The phone rang through to voice mail and the group released a breath they weren't aware of holding. "Okay so, or girl is definitely in a tight spot."

"Heh, how…" a lanky dark haired man tripped toward them stumbling over his words.

"Sir?" Sam reached out a hand steadying the stranger.

"How'd you get back so fast? You and Autumn were going the wrong way." The man asked brushing Sam off and looking around for the red head.

"When?" Dean demanded.

"Just now." He answered in a duh tone.

"Its got her, sonuvabitch." Dean pushed past Bob headed for the Impala, or more to the point its trunk. With an awkward apologetic smile Sam followed his brother, the others close behind. Bob waited a moment before tailing the group.

"We might as well drive out, it'll be faster and no one will see our weapons." Mackenzie advised. No one thought to object, they had one thing on their minds and that sure wasn't fighting over strategy. "See you out there." Mackenzie grabbed Jasper's hand and tugged him away toward their Rabbit.

"I told you, Winchesters are more trouble than good." Jasper said bitterly taking the driver's seat.


	8. Chapter 8

-1

**Chapter Eight**

Autumn came to, to the smell of rotting flesh, mold, and more salt than she'd tasted in town. She knew something was wrong before opening her eyes. She ached from sitting in one position for so long trying to keep pressure off a wound she didn't remember getting across her abdomen, a heavy chain hung from her hips, and something sharp and jagged was digging into her thigh. Her right side was burning from heat that was too close to the skin, which went a ways to explain the Martha nightmares making a come back.

"Relax, babe. I won't hurt you, at least not yet." it was Dean's voice that spoke but something about it was all wrong. There'd always been something soft under the shell of everything Dean did but this was hard and cold clear through.

"I'm a little tied up, relaxing doesn't seem too smart at the moment, honey." she spat. The room they were in was completely dark and when the shadows would dance away at the biding of the flames she was able to see green rock formed the walls, just a few feet away from her was a body, or at least what remained of a body. The flesh had been torn away it looked like the deer carcasses she used to come across as a child after the coyotes had gotten down tearing them to bits.

"The chain is necessary, it only bruises the meat if you pull and after that fight you put up I don't think you'll be pulling much." The creature holding her captive stood in the shadows out of sight, on occasion she'd catch a flash of an eye or nonhuman teeth.

"Was Remy tasty?" Autumn asked the darkness around her. She bottled all fear and panic, there was no sense freaking out until she was out of options and then it would be too late.

"Not as much as you will be, once the poison is out of your system. Hunters are all meat, very little fat to a hunter. Most of them spend life times marinating in fear and hate with just a hint of booze."

"You poisoned me?" Autumn pushed trying to remember what had happened between Bob approaching and waking up here.

"Don't fret, little one. You'll remember all in time, not that you have much." The rakshasa fell silent, making no noise meant Autumn couldn't track its movements. While stretching her senses as far as they'd go she felt the gash in her stomach, it was a good six inches long and almost one deep, it was going to take more than a few stitches and if she wasn't attentive it would leave one hell of a scar.

"Did you wait for the poison to leave the others?" she asked when she couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"No, hunters are hard to come by, they deserve to be devoured and savored. You should be even better, since you're not big on alcohol."

"I do try to stay yummy." she said sarcastically covering the groan as she shifted to remove the rock from her leg.

"You're sweet, most hunters turn sour." They both let off hallow chuckles.

"How long have you been sitting on that one?"

"Just a few centuries, not long." her mother's voice responded. Autumn set her jaw she could handle the waiting game, the pain, and the blood the oozed from her abdomen, but using her mother to get to her was off limits. The pair fell into another silence stretching until Autumn was sure she'd lose track of time. "Don't have any questions for me? Most of you are just bubbling with things to ask."

"I know what you are, which explains why you do this, and hunters are a delicacy. I can't blame you for wanting to eat me, I'm still young as far as people go so I'd be plenty tender, I'm pretty meaty too. Sitting here by this fire is making me sweat so I'm sure I'd be a little salty too."

"You just have all the answers; don't you?" Autumn caught the strain in the demon's voice, she was getting under its skin.

"Nope, just have some wicked sources." she answered flippantly.

"I'm Abijah, did you know that?"

"God is my father, I like that. I demon whose name declares them the child of God." Autumn remembered the name from a book she'd bought when trying to name animals back home, after all you can only name so many sheep Lamb Chop.

"You like names." Abijah stepped around so Autumn could see her. She'd not just stolen her mother's voice but body too. Her golden blonde hair was tainted by the orange flames, blue almond shaped eyes sparkled, a too sweet smile teasing at her lips. Autumn looked away burying the knowledge of how alike her mother and sister looked. "What's wrong baby girl?"

"Abi, why mental anguish? What about mental torture is so appealing?"

"The physical torture ruins the meat and your weak human body will only take so much before releasing you. Abijah leaned over Autumn, slipping a finger under the woman's chin, tilting her head to look the demon in the eye. "Does wittle Autty-girl, not like seeing Mommy?"

"I don't mind seeing Mommy, but seeing you use her is a little painful." Autumn admitted jerking her head back.

"Aw, that's my girl, tell Mommy what hurts." Abijah cooed.

"For starters having my belly laid open." Abijah's eyes lit up.

"If you're feeling pain then the poison is wearing off faster than I expected."

"Do I get a dying wish?" Autumn asked lacing humor into her voice. Abijah stared at her a moment trying to comprehend this move.

"Sure, why not?"

"I want to see your true form." Abijah smirked.

"Darlin' you can't handle my true form."

"Oh, so you're Zeus now? If I look upon your true self I'll suddenly die from the overwhelming power of you." Abijah laughed.

"Something like that, kiddo." she shimmered into a six foot tall, purple and green dinosaur. "But this is close."

"You're true form looks like a pedophile dino's cousin?"

"No, but its fun to toy with you."

"Ella said she was in a cave." Jasper told Mackenzie, as they ignored the speed limit. He'd had a few moments with Ella, the original woman to come up missing this morning, before they'd left.

"Okay, we head costal find the cave with our demon and Daemon." Mackenzie resolved reaching for her phone to call the others with the withheld information.

"Don't." Jasper grabbed her hand without looking away from the road. "If the Winchester's are such amazing hunters they'll find her on their own."

"Jaz we're risking Autumn. Do you really want that? What if something happens to her?"

"Mack, you know what John'll"

"Damn it! Jasper, I get that you've got Winchester issues. You're not alone, they're scary good at what they do but they didn't choose this life it chose them. Just like Autumn didn't choose to be kidnapped. So don't let her get killed because you're jaded."

"Mack, we'll save her." Jasper said it with such conviction Mackenzie almost believed him.

"I'm calling Teenie, she at the very least deserves to know."

"No, she'll tell those boys of hers. We'll grab Autumn, kill the rakshasa, and get out. We don't need them."

"Dean's going to do more than black your eye, and I'll help. You're being an ass. How would you feel if it were me and he wasn't telling you something like this?"

"Mackenzie, we aren't sharing. End of story."

Athena's phone laid heavy in his pocket. Mack had given him wrought iron bullets filled with holy water, Athena had slipped her cell into his pants, and Sam had swore to call when they reached their destination, leaving Dean laden with weaponry in the forest lining the river that would pour into the ocean in a couple of miles. They were barely five miles from the ocean the way it was, and every little bit one of the three cars would stop and its passengers would unload and search for Autumn and the rakshasa that stole her. Dean tightened his grip on the shot gun in his hands, at the thought of what that thing could be doing to his Autumn. He wasn't sure the creature could travel so far so fast but he'd rather be ahead of it and let it run into him than stumbling behind it and never catch up.

As he trudged through the trees, trying to be as quiet as Autumn always was, he kept his mind away from the things the shape shifter had used his body for last time by creating a system so that Autumn, or any member of their family, wouldn't fall for this again. It was a new kind of fear that filled him as he thought of what the demon could be doing to his girl. Athena's phone rang startling him out of his thoughts and search.

"We lost sight of them." Sam none too pleased to admit this. Athena was loading guns sitting on the bumper while he called to tell Dean they'd stopped and were going in, two miles away from where they'd dropped Dean.

"They know something." Dean growled through the phone and Sam knew this was harder for him than he'd admit. He couldn't imagine being Dean right now, not knowing if Autumn was dead or alive or even where she was, was hard enough without the relationship the older two shared.

"Of maybe they're just in a hurry to get to their position. Have you seen anything yet."

"No, Sammy." he cut the call short and Sam looked over to Athena who offered him a gun and a smile.

"Ready to make this bastard eat iron?"

"How long does it usually take?" Autumn asked referring to the poison running through her veins.

"A day or so, are you sure you're completely human?" The way her memories kept shuffling she knew the demon was in her head searching for a reason for things to be speeding up, and finding nothing.

"100 percent human, your looking at my only form right here. So, you ready to show me yours?"

"You just don't give up do ya kid?" Abijah grinned.

"Not as long as my heart is beating and there's a breath left in my lungs. Giving up is cowardice, and that's the last thing I'll ever admit to being."

"Hmm." Abijah nodded standing up. She still held Barney's form and walked awkwardly around her tail having already smacked into the walls of the cave several times, and been singed a couple too. "Guess what, you've got some determined friends."

"What?" Autumn rocked to her feet, gathering her chain up in her hands and stepping up next to the demon.

"I can smell them, your friends are coming. A male and a female," Abijah smiled turning towards her. "The party is about to get started."

**A/N: Howdy ya'll. The grounding don't hold well when no one is home. Lol. Okay, so its longer than the last chapter, and didn't commit suicide but I wanted to put it out because I'm not sure when I'll have more ready. I'm a tad bit stuck. But we're almost done, couple more chapters and I already know the next fic fairly well. But I've got to get to the farm now. So review guys and I'll see you soon!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: One eyed Mike, the wonder dog, is the reason this has taken so long. He has decided that I am to be his full time playmate and I've only gotten to escape him now because he's entertained by a rawhide. That and I've been fighting off writer's block, this chapter has been a pain in the ass. But anyway, R&R, and I'll see you again soon.**

**Chapter Nine**

Jasper stepped around to the trunk of the Volkswagen, and with him properly distracted, extracting weaponry, Mackenzie text messaged Athena's phone telling her where they were and why. Jasper came back thrusting a sawed off in to her hands, already taking off down the coast. Sand met driftwood that lay up against trees, the river fed the ocean not far ahead of them, Mackenzie had a brief thought of how perfect this place would be for a bonfire and a few beers.

"See that?" Jasper asked after fifteen minutes of pushing through the brush and trying not to trip over fallen trees, none of which Mackenzie was doing to well at.

"See what, Jaz?" she asked irritably as she looked up from the fallen tree she was trying to untangle herself from.

"Smoke, Macky." He sighed turning around to help his wife. "Where there's smoke there's fire and where there's fire there's demons."

"Jasper, why the hell would a demon send smoke signals?" she pulled her arm free of his grip and stumbled out in front of him.

"It wants us to find it." Mackenzie rolled her eyes.

"It also thinks we're finger lickin' good."

Dean had passed frustrated and pissed off a half hour ago, now he was just ready to shoot anything that moved, he'd worry about what it was afterwards. He shouldered his gun and scanned his surroundings, fighting to believe that this wasn't totally pointless, that a demon couldn't hide its tracks so well he'd never make it to Autumn. Athena's phone started freaking out in his pocket startling him out of his dismal thoughts. Cursing he pulled it out and looked at it. Seeing there was a new txt he opened the phone to read it, ignoring all rules of privacy.

"Tee caves on the coast -Mack" Grinning like a mad man he tore back the way he came dialing Sam's number as he went. Sam answered sounding just as frustrated as he'd been a few seconds ago, Dean repeated the message trying not to sound giddy with the break.

"Are you sure we can trust Mackenzie?" Sam asked cautiously. Dean heard Athena's protesting in the background.

"Mackenzie texted instead of calling, Jasper don't want us to know." Dean reasoned in no mood to pick apart the motives of the couple. His mind was on one thing and that was getting to Autumn, everything else would wait.

"Okay, I'll be on the road in a few minutes." Sam hung up and Dean jammed the phone back into his pocket picking up speed as he broke through the trees and hit the road. He still had a ways to back track before he got to the Impala but he'd be there soon.

Autumn pulled herself to the end of her chain, feeling very much like a dog, she leaned into the cave wall, standing wasn't exceedingly easy and she was starting to feel light headed from the blood loss, she really needed to sit down, not move, and try to convince the blood to clot. But she was on a chain, injured, and being held by a demon that feeds on human flesh, sitting still wasn't exactly easy to do either. Abijah had changed forms again, now she was a particularly disturbing looking man, inky black hair that hid his left eye, pierced nose and lip, with a malicious crooked grin that reminded her of Captain Hook.

"Would you stop staring at me?" Abijah snapped.

"Whose coming?" Autumn looked to her belly, she'd found that her chain allowed her to move to the mouth of the cave, all it really did was prevent her from leaving as it wouldn't go over her shoulders or hips, she got flashes of the struggle when she did, enough to know that who she'd thought to be Dean sprouted claws and played slice and dice.

"Don't worry your precious isn't with them."

"Sam and Athena?" Autumn inquired forcing emotion from her voice, she wasn't sure if she was glad for a rescue party or afraid for them.

"Athena's your sister?" Autumn nodded. "Then no, it's the other girl you were with, and they've mixed their scent fairly well. What are their names?"

"Sweet heart you've just spent an hour in my head they're names are just about on top of the stack of information in there."

"Not helpful, you've got our mind in a blender." Abijah mumbled.

"Yea tends to help when I've got snakes slithering around in my mind." Autumn scoffed.

"Child if you're not going to share anything useful sit down and don't die. Your meat spoils when you die."

"Thanks for your concern."

"Shh." Mackenzie pressed a finger to her lips signaling her husband to shut up and listen. She knew she'd just heard voices, he obeyed in one of his rare shows of trust in her abilities.

"What does human taste like anyway?" they caught Autumn's voice just within a cave not but ten feet ahead of them.

"Like chicken?" a distinctly male voice answered her.

"You're unbelievably original."

"Fine, you taste like sausage, your even better with syrup."

"Well, we know Autumn's not lost her sense of humor." Jasper grinned. Mackenzie shook her head before finding away to sneak up on the opening of the cave.

Abijah saw them coming and sent Autumn back into the cave where she could mask the woman's presence. She decided to appear invisible until she knew what the hunters were packing, the element of surprise was always fun anyway. As soon as they were within mind reading range she knew their names. The male the strutted around like an overly proud rooster was Jasper, and his little hen was Mackenzie. The pair exchanged a series of movements she knew meant to keep quiet and not shoot until they knew Autumn was safe. It really was ridiculous, that they thought they could get away with such a barbaric language.

Jasper stepped into the cave, leaving Mackenzie outside, there was no way to hide or avoid any attack, and he knew his enemy would be armed with whatever Autumn had on her. He moved with caution but didn't see anything that could harbor evil, and relaxed motioning Mackenzie in behind him.

"Nothing here babe."

"Jaz?" Abijah swore inwardly, she couldn't believe the gull of this one to call out when she was as good as dead already.

"Autty, where are you?" Jasper looked around desperately trying to place the voice. Abijah chose to confuse the hunter further stepping silently behind him, between him and his wife.

"Right here." She answered still clouding his mind so he couldn't see her. Jasper spun back around and glared at Mackenzie.

"Not really the time for joking."

"Wasn't me." Mackenzie said sounding every bit like a four year old.

"Abijah's standing right between you can't you see her?" Autumn whined.

"Autumn, what is it you call me?" Jasper asked and Abijah scrambled to read the man's mind but he'd managed to block her out, damn hunters with their developed skills.

"Cloud-boy," Autumn answered bored. Jasper stepped forward flanked by Mackenzie with her gun held up ready to shoot at the first sign of movement. Abijah was forced to step back to avoid being detected.

"Okay, Autty, I need you to keep talking." Jasper commanded. Abijah didn't like where this was going at all. She was supposed to get the six hunters, they weren't supposed to pick up her bait and leave. She slipped around Mackenzie grabbing her waist and dragging her back out of the cave. Not to her surprise the woman started screaming and fighting the moment Abijah made her move. Abijah extended claws from her purple fingers dragging on across the forearm of her prey. Almost instantly the woman when lax in her arms. "Mackenzie!" Jasper turned back to his wife, gun aim at nothing he could see.

"Here." Autumn stood up, and Abijah couldn't hide her any longer, she wretched the gun free of Jasper's hand and fired barely grazing Abijah's arm but she was close enough now to just jump back and fly away.

"You're hurt." Jasper stated the obvious. Autumn rolled her eyes and dropped the gun, as pain erupted in her belly. She knew it hadn't been painful enough, and wasn't happy to see that reason was because she'd had the rakshasa in her head dampening her senses.

"Where's the others?" she wanted to ask for Dean, but somehow that sounded as bad as crying for Mommy."

"We split to find you. Are you going to be okay?" he knelt down next to her when she sank to the floor.

"Yea, go get Mack, I'll be fine, but if you wouldn't mind calling the others." Jasper nodded though he had no intentions of calling anyone. "Go, before they get too far to track." Autumn shooed. Jasper didn't need telling twice with a final look he ran out of the cave, leaving Autumn alone. She rolled onto her knees and crawled to the end of her chain, if she was going to pass out she wanted to be seen.

The Mustang pulled onto the road right in front of him and Dean passed it holding a hand up out the window. He sped up and they matched his pace following without question, like good little soldiers. Athena's phone rang again and he answered it without thinking. Thinking had become an overrated task.

"Follow this road straight out it'll dead end in a parking lot on the beach." Sam informed him.

"'Kay." He shut the phone laying it back on the seat for easy access. Sure enough the road led to a parking lot, the familiar silver Rabbit already parked. Dean muttered under his breath pulling his gun out behind him as he unfolded from the car.

"Shit!" Athena ran past him knocking the car door into him. "Sam get the first aid kit!" She skidded to a stop, collapsing to her knees, and Dean didn't have much time before Sam was pushing past too. He didn't waste time meeting them on the sand, his stomach sank down somewhere below his feet at the sight of Mackenzie sprawled out unconscious an deep cut in her arm and some minor scraps over her face and any other exposed skin was all the more injury she had but she was dug down in the ground like a cartoon character that makes a sudden landing at high speeds. Jasper wasn't far off looking no worse for the wear. "Mack!" Athena took the woman by the shoulders giving her a gentle shake, to no avail. She swore peeling back the woman's eyelids, as she was obviously breathing, her pupils were unfocused and dialated. "Sammy you want to see to this?" she asked laying Mackenzie's arm across her chest cut facing up to be cleaned and stitched before she crab walked over to Jasper. "He's been shot." Athena cocked her head to the side staring at the man laying before her. Dean left Sam to play Nightingale, going to stand over Athena. "This isn't Jasper." She told him.

"What do you mean?" He tightened his grip on his gun.

"Jaz, has a scar here." She said ripping the sleeve further to reveal the grazing of a bullet, "Just above this should be a scar where he shaved off a tattoo of some girl's name."

"Okay, then who is this?"

"Sam, holy water!" she called. Sam didn't hesitate tossing the flask, she didn't even get the cap unscrewed before 'Jasper' sat up. He took her around the throat easing them both to their feet, Dean fired just over Athena's shoulder going straight through the bitch's shoulder. "Dean!" Athena screamed dropping down out of 'Jasper's' grip when he pulled back.

"I'm not going to shoot you." He growled ripping her back behind him and flinging her into Sam. "You on the other hand." He stalked forward on the rakshasa.

"You won't kill me, you don't know where your girl is." The creature was holding his injured shoulder and was obviously trying fighting not to hit its knees, Dean smirked obviously holy water filled wrought iron was the key.

"Do you want to share or do I need to make you?" he jabbed the demon in the chest with his gun and it tumbled to the ground. Dean threw a questioning glance over his shoulder before putting the gun into 'Jasper's' back. Jasper shuddered and shimmered taking on the shape of a giant M&M, a shade of violet Crayola hadn't yet perfected and golden horn sticking out above a large green eye.

"I won't be here very long anyway." The rakshasa gave him a toothy grin, "I'll just keep that information to myself. She'll be dead by the time you find her anyway." Thinking taking a backseat to impulse again Dean filled the demon's chest cavity with iron.

"Athena, stay with Mack. Sam let's go." He waved his brother to follow and started following the tracks Mackenzie and Jasper had left on their way to wherever Autumn was.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Otay, I think I'm done. I'll have the next fic up in the next few days its ready just needs typed. This chapter is short but its found a good place to end sooo I'll leave it here. Mack and Jasper and Bob didn't work out as well as planned but they got the job done. REVIEWS are always welcome guys. I'll see you in a bit.**

**Chapter Ten**

Bob adjusted his gun holster and stepped out of his shiny black SUV, everything about him screamed FBI, which should have been enough on its own to stop a person in their tracks. He saw the blonde leaning over another woman on the ground and decided to pass them up, though they'd probably have some useful information he was after bigger fish. He saw such a fish leaving the scene as while he stood there watching. It didn't take much convincing to get him to dive into the woods and crash through the trickle the river had become. He'd get more than a raise for bringing in this bitch and her boy toy.

Jasper was more than a little disturbed that his wife was kidnapped by an invisible flying man-eater. There was something far from right about that, even in his book. He hated to leave Autumn alone the way he had but she'd never let him touch her, and he had to find his wife. It wasn't far before he heard Dean and Sam coming his way, he moved silently out of their way and listened to the conversation just long enough to learn Mackenzie was safe with Athena and the rakshasa was dead, he circled back around. If Mackenzie was safe it was time to do damage control and get to Autumn before they did.

"This is peachy Autumn Aura, you're seeing things now." Autumn groaned, fighting sleep and watching the approach of her rescuers. "It was a one-eyed, one-horned, flyin' purple people eater. A one-eyed one-horned, flyin' purple people eater  
Sure looks strange to me." She latched onto a song she'd heard somewhere in a past she barely remembered trying to stay awake. She had to stay awake long enough to tell Dean she'd be alright. But, God, it was taking them forever to get to her, couldn't they see her?

"Autty-girl," a repulsive voice purred in her ear. "Come, now. We can't be sleeping when your friends get here." She grunted in response, and the man propped her up against the cave wall. "You've got a nice hole in you're belly, honey. But you can't die on me. No no no you've got to stay with me a little longer."

"HEY!" her eyes shot open, that voice she knew, and it was angry. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" Dean demanded.

"Just helping," Bob answered standing up and wiping the woman's blood off on his pants. Dean shouldered his gun aiming it squarely for his chest.

"Step away from her," he commanded jerking his head to the side. Bob followed orders, there was no point in getting himself shot just yet, he could take out Paul Bunyan before he got himself shot. "Aut, how you doing?" Bob smiled at the concern the soaked the man's voice, sweet of him to crack his mask on her behalf.

"I'll be fine, Dean. Just take care of 'im" her eyelids were getting heavier by the second and staying upright was an uphill battle. The pain was dulling, and that worried her more than anything, pain meant you were alive, and at this rate she wasn't going to be very alive very long.

"I can get her fixed up good as new." Bob said in a sugary voice. "Just come with me and I'll take care of her," He bargained. For a split second Dean looked like he might consider the offer.

"I've got a better idea, Sam cuff him." Bob wanted to laugh, Dean was certainly a creative guy. Sam looked at him like he was crazy, and Bob had to agree with this. "Just do it then start taking him back to the cars. I'll get Autumn." Sam complied.

"Cuffs are on my hip." Bob told Sam when he approached, he allowed the younger man to do as he'd be bid. The weren't far when a gun shot echoed back at the cave.

Dean shot the chain breaking the padlock that kept Autumn in place. She winced but made no further effort to protect herself. He gently scooped her up in his arms shifting her so she didn't look so broken and left. Sam and Bob had stopped when they heard the gun shot and as he passed he signaled Sam to knock the agent unconscious. The journey back was made so much more difficult with his precious cargo, and it didn't help any when Jasper stumbled out of the woods. Sam kept Jasper between the two of them not that he'd have been able to do much if Jasper had tried anything stupid.

Athena ran to them as soon as she saw them, leaving Mackenzie where she lay. The blonde withdrew when she saw her sister, her eyes meeting Dean's question swimming in them. He had very few answers for her, and couldn't have been happier when Jasper pulled her off for a briefing on his wife's condition and to hear what had happened. Sam grabbed the first aid kit and Dean went to lay Autumn on the hood of the car.

"Let me do it." Athena said coming up behind him with the kit Sam had gone for. Dean stepped back letting her remove Autumn's shirt and clean the drying blood from the wound, the blood loss had slowed considerably but it still hadn't stopped and that had him worried. "Jasper said Mack'll be fine, that the poison from the claws takes a while to work its way through the system."

"Good." Dean watched her dab a wet portion of Autumn's shirt around the gash cleaning away the blood. Athena's nimble fingers shook as she threaded the needle. She drew a deep breath climbing on the hood to be nearer her sister. "Teenie, I'll take care of this, get a blanket out of the trunk of the Mustang so we can have her covered up on the way back." Athena gladly handed over the needle and Dean started his work. No one approached him as he stitched Autumn back together and placed her in the front seat of the Impala. He'd been hell bent on pounding Jasper into the ground but now he just wanted to get Autumn home to rest up. "Sam, Athena let's go." He ordered, and neither hesitated before getting in the Mustang. Sam had already helped Jasper load Mackenzie in that stupid little foreign wreck he drove.

Dean didn't sleep that night staying up to watch Autumn, Mackenzie stopped the next afternoon to check on them and wish them well. She'd had the presence of mind to leave her husband behind, at least. She and Athena talked out on the hood of the Mustang for a while before she left and Sam hovered around on his computer. Autumn woke up several times though not for very long, not that he expected her to, she'd lost so much blood he probably should have taken her to the hospital. That evening though, she was sitting up in bed.

"Dean?" she asked meekly, causing him to stir from his sleep, in the uncomfortable chair he'd pulled up to the side of the bed.

"Hey stranger." She smiled. "How do you feel?"

"Like shit but I could eat a cow." Dean got out of his chair going for her cell to order her something. "Dork, don't worry about food right now." She called him back and he dropped down on the bed next to her. "Is everyone else alright?"

"Yea, Mackenzie and Jasper left this afternoon. Sam thinks he's got us a job back west." Autumn scooted over leaning into him and sighed.

"What about you and Athena?"

"We're good, it you we're worried about." She smirked.

"Do you really think you're going to get rid of me that easily? Babe, you're stuck with me for a long while, yet."

"That's comforting." He laughed wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "We're going to start tying you Daemons to us when we go out. You get lost too easily."

"Shut up and tell me about this hunt Sammy's found."

"How do you expect me to shut up and talk?" she rolled her eyes.

"Dork," she tried a warning tone but didn't really manage it.

"Aut," he mimicked.


End file.
